Obituary of David G. Evelyn

David George Evelyn, 69, an accomplished artist and honored art teacher from Falls Church, Virginia, died March 11 in Suburban Hospital in Bethesda due to respiratory complications from pneumonia, according to his partner Robert Lee. He had lived in Northern, Virginia since the early 70's. His professional life was defined by his work as an artist and an art educator. He taught art and art history in various schools for over 40 years, primarily at Lake Braddock Secondary School in Burke, Virginia from 1975 until his retirement in 2003. He also served as Art Department Chair at the school for several years. He continued to teach part time at Lake Braddock Secondary School and other educational institutions until 2008. Mr. Evelyn was born in Tarrytown, New York and graduated from Pleasantville High School in 1961. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Art and English from Bucknell University in Pennsylvania in 1965. Later he received a Master of Fine Arts degree with an emphasis in printmaking from George Washington University in 1972. As an artist, Mr. Evelyn was particularly well regarded and respected in art circles both in the Washington, DC area and in Maine, where he had a summer residence in Islesboro for over 40 years. Mr. Evelyn worked in various media throughout his creative career. His early works focused on painting, printmaking, and fiber art. His later work consisted of multimedia creations including collage, montage, and assemblage. He was particularly well-known and well regarded for his "found object" art which was heavily influenced by Atlantic Coast sea and landscapes, particularly in and around Islesboro, Maine. His "found object" art included multiple items ranging from driftwood to discarded toys with thematic emphasis often placed on pop culture and social issues. Evelyn incorporated his approach to art in his teaching of art history at Lake Braddock High School where, according to Joni Dim, a fellow art teacher at Lake Braddock for more than 25 years, "he had some of the most well attended art classes in Fairfax County because his classes were often described as magical." His art was exhibited widely in the Washington DC area and in Maine. Through the Capitol Hill Art League, he had 40 juried group shows from 1995 until recently. In 2006, his work was included in the Maine Print Project, a group show at the Center for Maine Contemporary Art. In Maine, his work was exhibited in 15 one man and group shows through the Isleboro, Maine Historical Society at various times since 1973. In 2007 his art was exhibited in a group landscape show at the Jamison Gallery in Portland, Maine. He was founding member of the Torpedo Factory Art Center in Alexandria, Virginia and was a resident artist there from 1975 until 1978. As an art educator he was a member of the National Art Education Association (NAEA) from 2000 until 2008. The NAEA honored him with the Secondary Art Teacher of the Year Award for Virginia in 2001. His receipt of that award led to his selection as Secondary Art Teacher of the Year award for the Southeast Region of the United States in 2002. From 1997 to 2007, Mr. Evelyn was an instructor at the Saturday Teacher Workshops in the Education Division of the National Gallery of Art. During that time, his many workshops included instruction on Fresco, Modernism in America, Andy Goldsworthy, Jasper Johns, and Edward Hopper. "David was a joy to work with and a favorite instructor among teachers participating in our professional development programs for teachers" said Julie Springer, Senior Educator and Manager of Teacher Programs at the National Gallery of Art in paying tribute to Mr. Evelyn. "I think what people loved most about David was his gentle and compassionate nature. I think what he loved most about teaching was being able to mentor people and encourage them to recognize and value their own creativity". As a strong advocate of diversity and inclusion, in 2001, Evelyn helped catalyze the creation of a "Gay-Straight Alliance" student organization at Lake Braddock High school to break down gay student discrimination and create dialogue between gay and straight students. He mentored and supported the group as its faculty adviser until his retirement. Mr. Evelyn had been a highly active member of St. Mark's Episcopal Church on Capitol Hill since 1983. In addition to teaching Sunday school, he served on the governing body of the church, the Vestry, from 2001 to 2003 and was one of the Co-Directors of the Christian Education Program from 2006 to 2008. He became an Elder in the church in 2008. He attended and taught many classes in the church within its functional education program and for several years was a member of the choir. His church community was another area in which he placed emphasis on his art, often teaching classes on art or conducting instructional tours of art exhibits in Washington DC for church members. In 2003, St. Mark's sponsored a 40 year retrospective of his artwork. Isleboro, Maine was another great passion in Mr. Evelyn's life. He was a well-known and admired personality on the island and served as Vice President of the Islesboro, Maine Historical Society from 2004 2008. For many years he served as the curator for the Society's annual summer art show. Mr. Evelyn is survived by his partner, Robert Lee of Falls Church, Virginia; his son Alex of Ashburnham, Virginia; his daughter Megan and son-in-law Medard Didavi of Gaithersburg, MD; two grandsons Karl and Clark Didavi; his brother Douglas of Sugar Hill, New Hampshire; his sister, Lynn Rohrs of Virginia, and his former wife Jayne. A Requiem Eucharist and celebration of Mr. Evelyn's life will be held on Friday, March 22 at 1 PM at St. Mark's Episcopal Church at the corner of Third and A Streets, SE on Capitol Hill in Washington DC. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to any of three interests of Mr. Evelyn's: The David Evelyn Scholarship for the Guild for Transformational Studies c/o Winnie Mosher, 3050 Military Rd., NW, Washington, DC, 20015; Bishop John T. Walker School for Boys, 3640 Martin Luther King Jr. Ave SE, Washington, DC 20032; Islesboro Historical Society,388 Main Road, P.O. Box 301, Islesboro, Maine 04848; or to a charity of choice. Online condolences may be made at: www.rappfuneral.com